


UnderDrabbles

by Raithwin



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Captured, Disney Referance, Drabbles, Fluff, Gen, Implied Character Death, Inspired by Fanart, Inspired by TicTok, M/M, More Tags Added with New Chapters, Shenanigans, Slice of Life, mafia
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-18
Updated: 2019-11-13
Packaged: 2020-03-07 14:26:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 9,093
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18875038
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Raithwin/pseuds/Raithwin
Summary: A series of drabbles and short stories so they all have somewhere to live. This fandom inspires some of the oddest and cutest ideas. To start with, what is the return policy on a passed out skeleton? Second, its not good when the sketchy guy helping your investigation sounds nervous greeting the two monsters who just interrupted said investigation. Third, just where do little skeletons come from? More and more added as they come.





	1. Return Policy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A long night and a passed out skeleton has Grillby thinking about a half joking policy.

Grillby eyed Sans as the skeleton sways on his bar stool. It was stand up night and the bar was packed what seemed like half the town. There were even a few from out of town. Monsters were hooting and laughing or booing good naturedly as various patrons took their turn at the mic. Sans had been acting as MC between his own turns cracking terrible but amusing skeleton jokes and puns. Which was fine with Grillby. It meant he didn’t have to run the event and people stuck around longer.

No, the current issue had started earlier in the evening. Someone, Grillby really wanted to know who, had decided to show their appreciation by buying drinks for their favorite jokesters. Then others had started. Pretty soon, most of the jokesters had several paid drinks and were thoroughly smashed. Grillby had started keeping tally of who had how many paid for drinks rather than making them right away. Honestly, it was probably his most profitable night in decades.

“eeeyyy, grillbz~, ‘nother round fer us!”

Grillby snorted as cheers rose behind Sans and glanced down at the tallies. He’d been keeping them on a small chalk board he sometimes used when he had specials. Of all the names on it, Sans had the most. They almost ran over into the next person’s row. He’d already taken off and added back over a dozen such marks. With how drunk everyone was getting Grillby doubted they realized they were essentially paying for their own drinks. Perhaps it was the thought that counted. Once he had finished pouring and passing drinks to the other patrons, Grillby poured one for Sans but kept hold of it.

“…Sans, I think you’re close to your limit,” he said.

“awww, come on grillz. ‘m fine. great even! can still feel m’nose ‘n everything,” Sans exclaimed cheerfully.

Grillby frowned, “…you don’t have a nose, Sans.”

Sans smile grew wider as the crowd behind him roared with laughter. Grillby’s flames sputtered and popped a moment, realizing Sans had roped him into another skeleton joke. For a moment, the temptation to boil the dink in his hands was almost too good to ignore. Then he sighed, plunked the glass down and made himself busy erasing the correct number of tally marks from Sans’s row.

“yer da best, grillz,” Sans said.

Grillby snorted softly. At least Sans was a mellow drunk. Especially with so many people to talk to. And despite leaning heavily on the counter, Sans still managed to spin around to chat with them. Shrugging mentally, Grillby decided it was fine for now. Sans usually knew his own limit after all.

“Yo, Grillby!”

Grillby looked up from his task and spied Stolt waving at him from one of the tables. Stolt was a local Grillby only saw during stand up night. Grillby cocked him his head inquiringly.

“Kitchen still open?” Stolt asked.

Grillby nodded and made his way out from behind the bar. It turned out the whole table, most of them out-of-towners, wanted burgers and fries. Grillby also learned this group loved going to stand up nights at various clubs and bars in the Underground. They said Grillby’s was now one of their new favorites despite this being only their second time visiting. That was nice to hear for sure. He thanked the group and went to make their food.

The night went on like that. Grillby served drinks and food while the customers chatted noisily and laughed. They eventually stopped taking turns with the mic and Grillby had to rescue it before it met an unfortunate end. Someone tried to eat it. Needless to say, it had been alarming to learn the reptile had eaten small electronics before when drunk, including their own phone. Grillby decided to switch that table to water and gave them some fries in hopes of preventing any more incidence.

For the longest time, folks seemed to be content to stay and socialize. Grillby didn’t really have a set closing time. Most nights he simply closed up after Greg, a perpetually drunk Rabbit, stumbled out for the night. Stand up nights often ran longer though. Tonight was already record setting in terms of guests and sales. Only a little longer and it would be record breaking for lateness open too. The previous record was for 12:41 am. Pretty late for a small town grill and bar.

Finally, around midnight thirty, patrons started leaving. A large group was apparently going to Stolt’s to continue drinking and partying. They bought several bottles from Grillby before going on their merry way. Grillby spared a moment to feel bad for Stolt’s neighbors. Ah well, the stories that arose should be amusing if nothing else. Now that it was finally quieting down, Grillby was able to make the last call. The Dogi, Sans, and Greg took him up on it. The last few patrons decided it was well and truly time to head home. They stumbled out in a group, singing merrily. Grillby started cleaning the bar. His regulars wouldn’t mind. He was pleasantly surprised when the Dogi started to help.

“You’ve been working hard tonight, Grillby,” Dogamy said.

(“Seems the least we can do after keeping you open so late,”) Dogressa added.

So Grillby gratefully accepted the help. He left them cleaning the front and went to clean the kitchen. Thankfully, he was always very neat so clean up was fast. When he went back out to the front, he found chairs neatly stacked, tables cleaned, Dogamy sweeping the floor, and Dogressa cleaning the bar top around Sans and Greg. Greg had apparently been deposited on the stool next to Sans so his chair could be put away and the two were now slumped over on the counter chatting sleepily.

“…thank you, both of you,” Grillby told to Dogi.

The grinned at him.

(“Think nothing of it, Grillby,”) Dogressa said.

“We’ll take Greg with us when we’re done, too,” Dogamy added.

“…ah.”

Grillby realized Greg was probably too drink to see straight, let alone walk at this point.

“…I appreciate it.”

While the Dogi finished up, Grillby quickly cleaned behind the bar. Though, again, there wasn’t much to do since he kept things fairly neat and cleaned between serving drinks. After putting up the last glass and cleaning the wash station all that remained was the till and the chalk board. There were still tallies on the board. It looked like Sans’s tab would go down for a little while. Grillby would subtract it out later and see how long it took the skeleton to notice.

Chuckling, Grillby set the board aside for the morning and secured the till. It always had the same amount of G in it. Any extra moved magically to the bar’s strong box. Anything in there over a certain amount automatically was deposited in the bar’s bank account. It was all quite convenient really. Grillby never had to worry much about theft or hiking through town with a sack full of G to deposit. The whole thing made close up safer and easier to be sure.

“Alright Grillby, seems like we’re all set,” Dogamy declared.

Grillby looked up to find the Dogi standing by the counter. The floor was clean and everything was wiped down. They really had saved him a lot of time tonight. Glancing at the final two patrons, Grillby realized that Greg and Sans had passed out. The Dogi, following his gaze, yipped soft laughter.

(“Oh yes, time to get these pups to bed,”) Dogressa chuckled.

She leaned over and scooped Greg up. The Rabbit kept right on snoring as she draped him over her shoulder. Dogamy picked up his and his wife’s axes and the two started for the door. Shaking his head, Grillby threw on his coat and came around the bar. As he picked Sans up, the skeleton stirred.

“Mhm…Pap?” he asked in a drunken, sleepy slur.

“…no, Grillby. Though Papyrus should consider getting you that tag,” Grillby joked.

“heh~”

It was a running joke between Grillby, the Dogs, and the skeleton brothers. Grillby had been the first to make it after finding Sans asleep against a tree half buried in snow for the fifth time that month. He’d been helping Papyrus locate his wayward lazybones brother at the time with the help of the Dogs. Grillby had grumbled that Papyrus should get Sans a tag that read, ‘If found unconscious, call this number or return to the Great Papyrus!’ The Dogs had loved it. Since then Papyrus had threatened to do it anytime Sans fell asleep someplace especially odd. Grillby’s current favorite was the time Sans had been found sleeping in a lit fireplace.

Tucking Sans securely under an arm, Grillby followed the Dogi out. He flipped the sign to ‘closed’ then shut and locked the door. It had been a very, very long day, but well worth it in the end.  
“We had fun tonight, Grillby,” Dogmay said, waving as he started down the road.

(“Yes, looking forward to the next time,”) Dogressa called as she walked away with him.

She and her husband disappeared down the road, Greg snoring the whole way. Grillby waved after them and turned the other way. He could feel Sans shifting against him. One boney hand braced itself against Grillby’s arm. He was always like this. Papyrus had confided once, when the boys were still young, that the fact that Sans allowed Grillby to carry him showed just how comfortable Sans was with him. Of course, Papyrus could pick up his brother anytime. If he did and Sans wasn’t already asleep, he’d usually pass out pretty quick. It was rather cute actually.

When he reached the skeleton brothers’ house, Grillby knocked on the door in his particular pattern. Then he waited. Hopefully, Papyrus would hear him. It was terribly late but he knew Papyrus was a light sleeper most of the time. But after a few moments of no answer, he knocked again.

“I gotta key, grillz. can leaf me here. be fine…”

Grillby looked down at Sans. The reassuring grin the skeleton was going for was rather destroyed by the way his sockets drooped with sleep and his words stretched out with a rough, deep, scratchy edge. If he put Sans down, chances were he’d fall asleep on the porch. Grillby was too nice a guy to allow that. If Papyrus didn’t answer, he’d use Sans’s key to open the door and set Sans inside. If he passed out there, at least it would be inside. 

Knocking one last time, Grillby finally heard sounds from inside.

“COMING, COMING. JUST A MOMENT, PLEASE!”

The lock sounded loud in the quiet of the night and the door opened just enough for Papyrus peeked out. He was in his pajamas and night cap.

“AH! GRILLBY, GOOD EVENING!”

“…good evening, Papyrus. I came by to return something of yours,” Grillby said in an amused tone, holding up a sleepily blinking Sans.

“BROTHER!” Papyrus exclaimed.

“’eyy~ Pap~” Sans murmured happily.

“SANS, FOR GOODNESS SAKE, HOW MUCH DID YOU HAVE THIS TIME? YOU NEVER STAY THIS LATE!” Papyrus scolded gently.

He took Sans from Grillby. Sans immediately hooked his arms around Papyrus’s neck, skull clonking softly as it dropped to the taller brother’s shoulder. Quiet snores followed immediately as Papyrus got an arm under Sans’s tailbone to support him. 

“…don’t be too mad at him. Someone got the crown to tip the jokesters by buying them drinks. He did help me have one of the most successful nights to date,” Grillby explained softly.

Papyrus sighed, his own voice quieting, “Well, if that is the case, I should be proud of him for working so long.”

Grillby nodded, “...you should come to the next one. He’d really enjoy that, I think.”

“It would surprise him you mean. He’d spent the entire night nettling me with bad jokes,” Papyrus countered.

Grillby smiled and shrugged. Papyrus chuckled and gave his sleeping brother a fondly exasperated look.

“I will consider it. In the meantime, thank you very much for bringing him home, Grillby.”

“…of course, just following the return policy,” Grillby said with a wink, “Good night.”

Papyrus laughed softly at that, “Nyeh heh, good night, Grillby.”

Grillby turned and started crunching back up the road to his home. Behind him, he heard Papyrus muttering, “Maybe I should sticky note it to him. He likes to ignore those anyways.” 

Then the door closed. Grillby huffed an amused breath. Maybe he would do that very think the next time Sans fell asleep at the bar. Just for fun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one was inspired by a fanart I saw while scrolling around Google. It's silly, I know.


	2. Long Time, No See

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stretch is Blue's only lead on a case about a missing human child. But the latest clue leads them into a sticky situation when Stretch's previous partners find them. Previous partners who are NOT happy with the guy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Inspired by a Tic Tok made by Roari_maru. If you see this, hope you enjoy!

“Reeeeed! And is that Slim? Long time no see! And speaking of no see, how ‘bout you say you didn’t see me? Eh?”

Blue watched the shorter of the two new skeletons sneer, showing off a lot of shark like fangs, and share a look with the one behind him at the question. The taller one just growled. Stretch, hands raised placating in front of him, backed up a step, inching his way closer to Blue. Blue realized he was probably trying to get close enough for that shortcut trick of his. So he took slow, sliding step towards Stretch. He could sense bad blood here.

“For old time’s sake?” Stretch tried.

A sudden blue hold froze Blue in place and slammed Stretch to the ground.

“That’s a no,” Stretch wheezed out.

Blue, struggling in the hold, glowering at the captors. Great. This was really going to mess up his ability to solve this case and prove himself. He just wanted to find that missing human darn it!

“What did you do?” he hissed to Stretch.

Stretch winced and replied in a whisper, “I…umm, might have been responsible for them, uhh, getting cursed?”

Blue stared at him in utter disbelief. Cursed? What sort of curse?! They didn’t have anything to deal with curses!

“…and thrown in jail,” Stretch added after a pause.

Blue’s eye lights went out. They were in far deeper trouble then he’d thought possible. That combination meant they had been doing something against the law. Possibly several somethings. This was about revenge. That’s why Stretch had wanted them to get out so fast. The shorter one, Blue guessed he was Red, flicked a hand and Stretch was dragged closer to him.

“You’re lucky they wanna talk to your sorry ass Stretch or you’d be dust where ya stood,” he growled.

“Talk huh? Suuuure! Got a phone handy?” Stretch asked, sweating nervously but smiling still.

“Nope, in person, Stretch. We’re taking a ride,” the taller one, Slim, growled, “You too, shorty.”

Blue’s eye lights flickered back on and he glared. It wasn’t like he had a choice, caught in the hold as he was. He still had his dignity however, so when he felt the pull against his soul, he marched forward rather than being dragged as Stretch was. As soon as they were close enough, the two dangerous looking skeletons each grabbed one of them and Blue felt the world drop out from under him. These guys could teleport too! It was unfair!

\----+----+----

When they reappeared, Stretch was tossed back to the floor on his knees and Blue was pressed down next to him.

“See?” a rough voice said, “The dogs can get along.”

“Hmm, yes, I suppose they can. If the motivation is right,” a sharp voice answered.

Blue looked up to find two more dangerous looking skeletons sneering down at them. Again, it was a shorter one with a broader frame, though more closely built to Blue himself then that Red character, and a ridiculously tall one. Both had teeth that were all fangs. Both seemed to have a thing for black and red leather. They were wearing similar jackets after all. Now that he thought about it, Red and Slim were similarly dressed as well. Was that significant? Maybe a sign of their rank or something?

The shorter one was perching regally on a bar stool, a crystal glass with a dark drink held in clawed fingers. The taller one leaned against the bar next to him, his own crystal glass and dark drink held in long, elegant claw tipped fingers. Blue had to suppress a gulp. There was something very off about these two. Mafia maybe?

“Stretch,” the taller one said, “I would have thought you’d know better than to be in our territory after what you did.”

“In my defense, I was doing exactly what you asked,” Stretch answered in a strained tone.

“And somehow, you caused far more trouble and expense then we paid you in the first place,” the shorter one countered.

Magic surged around them and Blue found himself surrounded by several jagged bone attacks.

“Shit,” Stretch muttered.

“So, last chance, why were you poking around in our territory?”

“Razz, Edge, I wasn’t there on purpose. And I didn’t know it was your territory. I would never, urk!”

Stretch was cut off by one of the bone attack pressing its point against his jaw.

“Yes, yes, always the coward is Stretch the Fox,” the taller one drawled.

Blue couldn’t stand it. Stretch might be annoying and definitely on the shady side, but right now he was Blue’s only lead and he wasn’t about to watch someone be killed! Throwing all his strength against the blue hold, Blue lunged forward and knocked the bone attack away from Stretch. 

“Look, he was there because he’s helping me! My investigation had lead me to that location, which means right now you guys are the main suspects!” Blue snapped at the two menacing skeletons.

Behind him, Stretch tensed and frantically whispered, “Idiot, no!”

Blue ignored him, still glaring at the two with all the authority he could muster. They stared back at him. Then, quite suddenly, all four villainous monsters started to laugh. Blue stiffened as the rough laughter filled the room, magic warming his face in embarrassment.

“Cowardly Stretch helping the authorities, who would have thought?” the smaller of the two bosses crowed, “Mutt, bring me your little captive.”

Indignity swamped Blue as he was hauled up into the air by Slim and then dangled in front of the laughing boss.

“You have spunk, little cop. I like that. Got anyone we should send your dust to?”

“How about Captain Alphys so she can track you down and arrest you?” Blue snapped back, tired of the superior attitude. 

He didn’t see the impressed but terrified look Stretch threw at him. All he heard was more laughing.

“NYEHEHE, this one is great Razz. I almost want to keep him for the entertainment value alone,” the taller one chuckled, setting his glass down.

Blue shot him another baleful glare. He wasn’t some pet! He was a member of the Crown City Guard, darn it! And now he knew the names of all four of these skeletons. Red and Slim who had captured them; Edge and Razz who were their bosses. He was still trying to figure out the dynamic between the four. Razz and Edge seemed to act as equal leaders. Slim and Red were clearly their subordinates but they apparently didn’t always get along. Was there a way to use that?

Before he could think of a way out, sharp boot steps announced the arrival of another person.

“Well, it’s about time you decided to join us,” Edge drawled.

Blue glanced to the side and found yet another skeleton striding into the room with military rigidity. Was this whole gang comprised of nothing but skeletons? Or were there really that many in the city? Snowdin had only had Blue and his father. This newest skeleton was at least a head taller than Blue. His clothes were sharply pressed and very rich black with gold accents. The slim black pants were tucked into the sleekest pair of highly polished boots Blue had ever seen. And Blue had polished a lot of pairs during his recruit days.

“Fucking damn it,” he heard Stretch mutter, “All three of them.”

“Shut it, ya cowardly shit,” Red snarled lowly.

Blue would have said something, protested the treatment, if the next person to come pacing quietly into the room didn’t shock him into silence. The lanky skeleton was chewing nervously on one of his yellow hoodie strings and taking in the room in quick little glances. When he made eye contact with Blue, he stood a little straighter, surprise evident. Then he seemed to bounce in excitement and pulled out a little note pad and pencil. He scribbled something on the note pad before passing it over to the other new skeleton.

“Hmm? What is it Coffee?”

Taking the note pad, the sharply dressed skeleton studied it for a moment before looking at Blue. Then he looked back to Coffee with a look that clearly said he didn’t understand. Coffee huffed, which Blue had to admit was still cute, and leaned down to explain what he wanted in a soft voice that Blue couldn’t make out. A glance at Razz and Edge showed them waiting with begrudging impatience. Edge was tapping a foot while Razz scowled. Did that make Coffee’s…companion, maybe? Did that make him the real leader? Blue decided to go with that assumption for now.

“Ah!” the leader said suddenly, understanding brightening his one eye light, “He was the one?”

Coffee nodded emphatically in answer before giving Blue a shy smile. Blue smiled back.

“Hi, again! I, umm, can’t say I expected to see you here, Coffee,” he said, doing his best to wave.

Coffee waved back and stepped closer.

“Thank you again,” he said in a quiet, happy tone, “the special sprinkles were really good.”

Blue couldn’t help beaming, “Mwehehe! I’m glad you liked them! Awesome sprinkles never fail to make for an awesome cup of coffee!”

“Where did you get them? I’d…love to have some,” Coffee asked.

“Oh! I make them actually. A friend of mine taught me. I could teach you if you like.”

Coffee shifted, fingers tapping together nervously, “I’m…not great in the kitchen.”

“I’m sure Wine would be happy to help, kitten.”

Blue looked back at Slim in surprise at the quiet statement. Despite still being held up by him, Slim had been so quiet that Blue had just about forgotten he was right there. The change in his expression was amazing. Before, it had been all angry snarls. Now, though Slim seemed a little confused by the turn of events, he was giving Coffee a fond look. It reminded Blue of the looks some of the adults in Snowdin gave MK. Though Coffee was mellower then MK by a lot. 

Blue snuck a glance at the skeleton Coffee had come in with, taking a reasonable guess that he was Wine. Wine was standing ‘at ease’, hands clasped behind his back, shoulders back and relaxed. He held his head high, eyes sharp despite one being blank and the long scars through the working socket stood out as sharp contrast against his bones. Everything about him seemed to demand attention and obedience. Yet in contrast to the sharp image, the look on his face as he watched Coffee, faint as it was, was a fondness that bordered on indulgent. Filing that observation away, Blue turned his attention back to Coffee whose hoodie now read ‘Hopeful Guy’ oddly enough.

“It’s a pretty easy recipe,” he told Coffee, “If I can borrow your pencil and notepad, I can write it down for you.”

“Ah, uhm…”

Coffee looked oddly flustered as he pulled out a notebook. It was a different one then before and Blue could see the cover of a third peeking out of his pocket. It looked like it said ‘watch’ something. He could only make out the ‘L’ that started the second word before it was tucked away again. Coffee then flipped open the notebook in his hand, found a blank page, and passed it to Blue along with his pencil. 

“Thanks!” Blue said with a bright smile, accepting both items.

Coffee smiled shyly and glanced down, tugging on his hoodie strings and pulling the hood partially closed. His hoodie now read ‘Shy Guy’. It had to be magic. Amused, Blue began writing out the steps and ingredients he had long since memorized, making a note that color was personal choice. Part of him did wonder what color this young monster would prefer. He seemed like an orange or gold sort of person. Or possibly black. The other part was wondering exactly what Coffee was doing here in the first place when everyone else was so clearly less then lawful. Sure, anyone could be good if they tried hard enough, but still, Coffee seemed too sweet and shy to do anything bad. Unless...they were his family?

“Edge, Razz,” Wine called.

Blue paused and glanced up as the two he’d previously labelled as tentative leaders marched over at Wine’s summons. Perhaps that really did mean Wine was the true leader. Razz and Edge had both been surprisingly silent throughout his entire conversation with Coffee. Blue glanced at Slim in hopes of some clue but was disappointed. Slim actually seemed to be reading what Blue was writing as he went, either to be sure that he was doing what he’d said or out of actual interest. Darn. And the leaders were speaking to quietly to be heard. 

There was a nudge to his soul from the blue hold still binding it. Not enough to shift him, but enough to get his attention.

"What's the next step?" Slim asked.

Slim was still reading over Blue's shoulder.

"Oh! Next is the last step. Here's what you do." 

Blue put as much cheer into his words as he could. As much to cover his pause as to give Coffee some reassurance.

Stretch, still on his knees behind them, was torn between watching the room and being threatened by Red. 

====+====

“What?” Edge snapped as soon as they were close.

“You do realize this means the blue one is off limits for now,” Wine said.

Razz groaned. He’d been worried this would happen as soon as Coffee had approached the guy.

“Is keeping him as a pet still an option on the table?” Edge asked, chin cupped thoughtfully.

“I think we have enough pets already,” Razz snapped, making a sweeping gesture over his shoulder to indicate the others in the room, “And keeping a cop will get annoying.”

“We can discuss pet options later, though I would prefer the option that keeps squabbles to a minimum. For now, let’s focus on the main issue,” Wine said, nodding at Stretch.

Stretch, seeing the three focus on his, swallowed hard. If there was ever going to be a convenient miracle for him, now would be the time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like this one is part of a larger story. When my wife read the first bit of it, I was told to drop all other stories to work on this one. She really likes Disney. Nyeheh. Eventually, she agreed to just getting this scene done for now while I figure out the rest.


	3. Skeletons Come From Magic Storks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Frisk wants to know where baby skeletons come from.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First time trying to write in this style.

“Where do skeleton monsters come from?”

You nod and ask is they come from humans since they look so much like a human skeleton.

“Nyeheheh, well, some do in a way. Or they uses to. These days all young skeletons are born of the combined magic of their parents like any other young monster. But in the old days, back before the war you see, sometimes a human would be reborn as a skeleton monster.”

You ask why only some.

“Well, there were certain conditions that were needed.”

You ask what kind of conditions. What made those people different from other humans?

“Primarily, magic needed to saturate their bones. These were often the sort of humans who would have been called wizards back before the war if the condition was recognized. But adults didn’t usually get reborn. They would either take measures to keep from dying or to keep from being reborn. So it was usually children. A skele-tiny here and there who had magic potential when they passed. This is why the humans hunted us skeletons so fervently you see. They thought it was us resurrecting and stealing the bones of children.”

You frown and ask why they thought that.

“Why because a new skele-tiny puts out a natural magical call. Any skeleton monster in the area is drawn to them. You see, this is because a skele-tiny’s personal magic will only sustain them so long. They need the ambient magic of another skeleton to sustain them until their new soul forms and their magic stabilizes. They become family. Sadly, the humans rarely saw it that way.”

You tell Papyrus you’d never heard of skeletons resurrecting outside of movies and old stories.

Papyrus shrugs, “It is possible that after we monsters were sealed underground magic on the Surface faded. I believe you mentioned before that no on up there uses magic in any way. Which is still strange to be honest.”

A sudden, terrifying thought occurs to you. You ask Papyrus what happened to the reborn skeletons if an adult skeleton didn’t find them in time. Papyrus’s expression falls and makes you feel like you just kicked a puppy.

“After a few days, they would fall unconscious. A day or two after that, the poor thing would crumble away to Dust. It very nearly never happened though! We skeletons were quite abundant before the war and a skele-tiny’s call very far reaching.”

You feel somewhat reassured by Papyrus’s words. Still, part of you can’t help thinking about the thought that had worried you. Graves had become deeper since the old days and coffins much sturdier. If a skele-tiny couldn’t break free… You shake your head to clear the thought away. It was better to believe there wasn’t enough magic on the Surface anymore for such a thing to happen. Part of you does wonder why Chara never revived then. Maybe there was something else that prevented it. Papyrus had mentioned “conditions” of rebirth after all.

“If I may ask, why the sudden interest, Frisk?”

You tell Papyrus you were curious because you had never met any other skeletons.

“I admit I haven’t either, but I’m sure they’re out there! I have never traveled much beyond Waterfall, but my brother has. Perhaps he knows of others. Now, how are those clever little swirly noodles? I’m very eager to try this ‘mac and cheese’ you are so excited about.”

Deciding to ask Sans about skeletons later, you go to check the pasta. You are very excited about this meal and very glad you found the recipe while exploring the Dump again. Cheesy goodness, here you come.


	4. Better Than a Dog Whistle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Remember kids, always keep pets on a leash. Especially if they're prone to biting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is actually the first fic I wrote for this fandom. Its mostly to explore a fun little idea I had.

“whoa, what’s with that?” Red asked, jerking a thumb in Slim’s direction.

Slim had gone across the road in front of the house to slouch under a tree and happily puff his way through a cig or two. That was exactly what he’d been doing the last time anyone had looked at him. Now, however, he seemed entirely ready for a fight. His hands were still in his pockets but he was glaring in the general direction of Muffet’s. He might have even been growling but none of them were close enough to know for sure.

“dang, sure looks like somethings got under his fur,” San commented.

Stretch grinned, “you could say he looks _barking_ mad.”

“BROTHER, NO,” Blue groaned.

“brother, yes,” Stretch quipped back.

Razz ‘tsk’ed sharply, “IF YOU WOULD STOP WITH THE JOKES, RED CAN HAVE AN ANSWER.”

Stretch and Sans looked like they were seriously thinking of saying something else. Blue gave them a look, one fist on his hip, and pointed at them sternly.

“HUSH!”

Stretch and Sans shared a look and then gave Blue identical, completely unconvincing, innocent faces. But they stayed quiet. Red chuckled and nodded to Razz.

“ok, so spill. what’s eatin’ Slim?”

Razz gestured over his shoulder towards the bar, “IT’S EITHER DOGGO OR GREATER DOG. THEY ALL GOT INTO A FIGHT THE OTHER DAY. MUFFET THREW THEM OUT AND THEN THE DOGI SEPERATED THEM. WHICH WAS ENTIERLY UNNECESSARY AS THE MUTT WAS WINNING. EITHER WAY, THEY”VE BEEN LIKE THIS SINCE.”

“so it’s an actual dog fight, eh?” Red mused.

He, Blue, Sans and Stretch all leaned out and looked up the road. Sure enough, Doggo was standing outside Muffet’s with teeth bared, flipping Slim off from across the road. Lesser Dog was with him, leaning back against the wall looking amused. There were other monsters about, but they were giving the growling pair wary looks and a wide berth.

“THEY AREN’T REALLY GOING TO FIGHT ARE THEY?” Blue asked, looking worried, “NOT WITH ALL THESE PEOPLE AROUND.”

Razz finally turned so he could level a regal stare at Doggo and all the other monsters in the area. Several of the already wary monsters picked up on the change in the air and quickly made themselves scarce.

“well that was impressive,” Sans drawled.

The monsters made of sterner stuff or those with more focused intent paid the subtle warning no mind. Which was fine, for now. Lesser Dog did sniff at the air though before turning to meet Razz’s icy gaze. The dog beast looked away almost as fast, stepping forward to grab Doggo’s shoulder.  Rolling his eyelights, Razz turned to look at Slim. He was still under the tree and was now using one hand to flip Doggo of in return.  A small smirk tugged at the corner of Razz’s mouth. Then he reached down to firmly grip the handler end of a short leather dog leash he wore strung through his belt loops. The other four on the porch noted with interest when the clip end swung upwards. Razz gave the leash a tug.

“Did His Collar Just Move?” Blue whispered to his brother.

“seemed to,” Stretch whispered back.

“yep,” Red and Sans chimed in with two very different levels of interest.

Slim shoved his hands back in his pockets and took a stiff side step towards the house. An angry stream of smoke blasted from his nasal aperture. Between that and the glow of the cigarette reflecting of his gold fang it made him look jarringly dangerous. It made Razz feel just a little bit giddy and soft. Not that he gave any sign of that. He simply enjoyed when his dog decided to show his fangs.

“Come On, Mutt. Leave It,” he said, giving the leash at his waist another firm tug.

“ok, it totally moved that time,” Red said, an interesting note in his voice.

Razz had not spoken loud enough to be heard across the street, but Slim seemed to relax. He flipped Doggo off one more time before shortcutting to Razz’s side.

Razz tutted in disapproval, “THAT WAS LAZY, MUTT. IT WAS A DOZEN PACES OR LESS.”

“apologies, m’Lord.”

Slim was back in his usual slouch and his cigarette was gone, but there was still a slight growl to his voice. Razz rolled his eyelights again but still reached up to pet Slim’s skull.  Slim hummed softly and leaned into the touch.

“I don’t care, I coulda kicked his bitch ass like he deserves!” Doggo’s rough voice barked loudly behind them.

In an instant, Slim had spun around to glare at Doggo, right eye light glowing a deep orange and an aura of murderous intent flaring up around him so intense it had everyone but Razz backing away.

“holy shit! didn’t know he had it in him!”

“RED!”

“i’m with Red, holy shit!”

“STRETCH!”

“oh, damn,” Sans said, “ok, his bite might actually be worse than his bark.”

“SANS!”

Blue buried his face in his hands out of frustration, rubbing his brow ridges and nasal bridge.

“ALL OF YOU SHUT UP. MUTT,” Razz reached out and snagged the ring hanging from Slim’s collar, tugging sharply, “DOWN. I DO NOT REQUIRE HIS DUST TODAY.”

“he can lose a few pieces without dusting,” Slim snarled lowly.

Blue, Stretch, and Sans being from kinder worlds watched in horrified fascination as Lesser Dog shrank back an Doggo’s tail dropped between his legs. Doggo kept glaring though, even while his friend was dragging him into a reluctant retreat. Red just looked amused.

“I WILL CONSIDER IT. FOR NOW, LEAVE IT.”

The magic and murderous aura disappeared as quickly as they had appeared. Slim huffed and crouched down next to Razz, his eyes falling closed. Razz patted his skull again before reaching up under his red bandana and somehow extracting a small, colorful foil packet that absolutely should not have existed in this world.

“where’d you get those, bud?” Sans asked as Razz handed the snack bag of BBQ potato chips to Slim.

Slim perked up and took the bag with a soft, “thank you, m’Lord.”

He ripped the bag open and ate the first chip in two quick bites. Sighing happily, Slim licked all the powdered sauce from his sharp phalanges and pulled out another chip. This one he nibbled slowly, savoring it.

“I FOUND THEM AT ONE OF THE SURFACE STORES BLUE DRAGGED ME TO WHEN WE WERE IN HIS WORLD. I THOUGHT THEY WOULD BE A GOOD TREAT FOR MUTT HERE. THEY ARE ALSO LESS DISGUSTING TO WATCH HIM CONSUME AND MUCH HARDER TO SPIKE WITH ALCOHOL,” Razz explained.

Stretch, who’d pulled out his current bottle of honey, looked anywhere but his brother who was staring at him rather pointedly. It had been solidly two whole days since the last time he’d done that.  And, in his defense, it was totally justified what with them randomly falling into the FellSwap universe after being in their own for almost two weeks. Booze was needed when you suddenly found yourself in a world that functioned better on violence then kindness.

“fair enough. it explains where you disappeared to anyways,” Stretch said as he studied the siding of the house.

“uh huh, anyways, what’s with the magic leash and collar bit?” Red asked, almost too casually.

“WHAT MAGIC LEASH AND COLLAR BIT?”

Trickles of red sweat broke out across Red’s skull.

“oh! hiya, boss,” he said quickly.

“DID WE MISS SOMETHING?” Papyrus asked, a step behind Edge.

“well, there was almost a dog fight. Slim and Doggo were _barking_ mad,” Sans told them with a wink.

“NO!” three separate voices shouted at him.

"you reused mine," Stretch drawled.

Sans grinned and shrugged, "didn't want 'em to miss out on quality work."

"HOW THOUGHTFUL, BROTHER," Papyrus said with an impressive amount of sarcasm.

Razz sighed hard as Slim leaned into him, offering comfort even as his eyelights danced in amusement.

“MOVING ON, WHAT IS THE TRICK?” Edge asked.

“THE MUTT CAN EXPLAIN. HE WAS THE ONE TO CREATE IT, AFTER ALL,” Razz answered, pulling the leash from his belt and giving it a gentle tug.

Slim glanced up at him then quickly finished his current chip.

“to put it simply, my collar and the leash are magically linked. all my Lord needs to do is hold it with the Intent of alerting me. It will act as if the two are still connected. I made it so my Lord could summon me to his side with ease should the need arise…” Slim trailed off.

The lanky skeleton, though still crouching, seemed to be tensing again. A red haze began to suffuse his sockets.

“THEY ARE IN THE DUNGEONS, MUTT. AWAITING THE QUEEN’S NEXT EXECUTION DAY,” Razz said sharply.

“they should be dust beneath my claws,” Slim growled, “ **t h e y   h a v e  n o t  b e  b e g u n  t o  h a v e  a  b a d  t i m e.”**

Razz pulled sharply on the leash in his hands. It gave an audible snap and the collar around Slim’s vertebra pulled just as hard towards Razz. Slim gasped, a hand shooting out to steady himself on the floor. He bowed his head, eyes hidden by the shadow of his hood. There was a tense moment of silence. Blue and Papyrus looked like they wanted to say something. Stretch reached out to place a steadying hand on Blue’s shoulder and Sans shook his head at Papyrus. Finally, Razz spoke.

“YOU’RE RATHER BLOODTHIRSTY TODAY, MUTT. RESTRAIN YOURSELF UNTIL I FIND A USE FOR THAT OR I WILL BE FORCED TO, UNDERSTOOD?”

“yes, m’Lord,” Slim replied, bowing a little deeper.

“VERY GOOD. NOW, SHALL WE ALL GO BACK INSIDE? DINNER CAN BE PREPARED AND WE CAN CONTINUE FIGURING OUT HOW TO FIX THIS MESS.”

There was a general agreement to that suggestion. Everyone trooped inside. Almost immediately, an argument broke out over what to actually make for dinner. Sans, Stretch, Red and Slim avoided it by collapsing on the couch in a comfortable jumble. Slim was finally able to go back to his treat. Stretch pulled out his honey bottle again and took a swig. Red eyed him in annoyance. He’d been out of mustard for some time now and hadn’t managed to secure more.

“so…we got any booze?” he asked quietly, “that we can actually get to?”

Slim’s eyes gained a mischievous twinkle, “check under the couch just about where sans is.”

Sans didn’t hesitate to lean over and dig excitedly under the couch. When he pulled his hand back he was holding two small bottles of cinnamon whiskey by the neck. They were the perfect size for stashing in a coat of hoodie pocket.

“very nice,” Stretch drawled.

“hell yeah! hand it over,” Red cheered as Sans pulled out two more.

Sans passed them out and the all quickly opened the bottles.

“hey guys,” Sans said after a few sips, “drinking game?”

“i’m in.”

“sounds good.”

“i know the perfect thing,” Slim said with a wink, “One of undyne’s animes.”

Slim got the show on and they hastily agreed to the rules. And that was how theur brothers found them an hour later. Caught red handed with the mostly empty bottles in hand. All except Slim who was innocently picking the crumbs of chips and flavoring from the bottom corner of his bag.


	5. Roar in the Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Disappearances have been quietly plaguing the town for a while now. Chara (US) thinks he has a good lead on a possible culprit. He's hoping Blue might know more.

“Hey, Blue, can I ask you something?”

Blue looked up from his work and smiled.

“Sure! Though if you want to ask about copying homework again, the answer’s no,” he said in a chipper tone.

“Nah, nothing like that,” Chara assured him, pulling out a chair and flopping into it, “Just heard something interesting the other day and wondered if you’d ever heard of it, being a skeleton and all.”

Blue made a face at that. Somewhere between curious and perplexed.

“Why would my being a skeleton change it?” he asked.

“It a legend about a skeletal creature so I figured maybe you’d know more?” Chara trailed off, sounding a little chagrinned.

Blue was frowning now and Chara rushed to continue, “It’s something called a Tserag or Tsager, I thing.”

Actually, Chara was fairly certain he’d mangled both names. Neither had been in a language he spoke after all. But, to his relief, Blue was looking more thoughtful.

“Just being a skeleton doesn’t mean I would automatically know about other skeletal beginnings,” he began sternly.

Chara deflated a little but waited in hopeful silence. He could practically see the coming ‘but’.

“However, in this instance, I do know something of those. But my family always called them _Sgerta_.”

Chara perked up, grinning, “So you do know! They sound kinda like werewolves or something!”

Blue rubbed the back of his skull, “Well, I don’t know about that. They always sounded more like dragons to me, rather than wolves. Why do you ask?”

Chara leaned in close, eyes bright with excitement and conspiracy.

“I heard a rumor about it being a possible culprit for the disappearances that have been happening!” he whispered enthusiastically.

Blue laughed, “But the sgerta are just a story! My uncle’s a scientist and I asked him about them when I was in stripes. He said there has never been evidence of a bipedal, draconic, people eating skeleton creature. Though I admit, they sound cool.”

Chara sat back with a pout. He wasn’t expecting Blue to laugh off the idea so easily. He’d been looking at his Dad’s notes about the investigation and he was sure the culprit was some unknown creature. Certainly the tracks matched no monster he’d ever met. He’d shared his suspicions with an online friend and they had linked him to a site with vague stories of skeletal dragon like creatures that preyed primarily on humans. Like other cryptids, it had sounded curiously, tantalizingly possible.

Chara enjoyed cryptid stories quite a lot. Those creatures of rumor and legend that were whispered of but never seen. This particular one sounded like a fascinating union between the stories of werewolves and wendigoes. Chara wanted to find out. He was DETERMINED to find out.

“Well, thanks anyway. I got a name for them now at least!” Chara said, standing and turning to go.

“Oh hey, before you go,” Blue called after him.

Chara paused in the door to look back.

“Where did you hear about them?”

Blue’s expression was all his normal brightly-eyed wonder, but Chara thought he was hiding a look of concern. Could Blue know more than he was saying? Suddenly, Chara found a seed of suspicion sprouting.

“Friend online,” he answered, trying to sound carefree,” Catch you later, Blue!”

“Bye!”

They exchanged waves and Chara left Blue to his studies. But now he had to wonder: could his friend be hiding something? Was there more than story and rumor to the sgerta?

\---=---=---=---

It had been almost eight months since he’d talked to Blue in the study hall about the sgerta. In that time there had been three more confirmed disappearances. Chara knew, from repeated peeks at his father’s papers and overheard conversations, that more were suspected. The town was becoming wary. People refused to go out late alone. Reports had been made about strange roars in the surrounding forest. People stopped going out into the woods and now there was even talk of implementing an advisory curfew for the town.

Folks who lived close to the edge of town had made local security companies fiscal year with a flurry of installation. Now almost all had camera and automated lights watching every corner of their homes. When Chara had commented on it, Blue had mentioned his brother had installed something similar years ago. Chara had wondered about that before remembering Blue’s brother liked to tinker with engineering and various kinds of machines.

Chara still hadn’t managed to shake his seed of suspicion that Blue knew more than he let on. If anything, it had grown a little. He had little enough to go on, but he couldn’t shake the feeling. There was at least one thing though. Blue had refused to give up his twice daily runs in the woods. Many of the disappearances had happened somewhere in those woods, but Blue insisted he was perfectly safe.

Chara did know Blue was a confident skeleton who was a lot stronger than people thought. He probably could defend himself if needed. Still, Chara couldn’t help wondering. He felt guilty, suspecting his own friend like this. He didn’t _want_ to think Blue was capable of causing at least six people to vanish. Blue was far too sweet and earnest to be behind something like that. He had felt even guiltier when he’d started casually keeping tabs on his friend. He traced Blue’s running path, once a popular path for several recreationalists, and found it passed at least one of the disappearance points. Only the girl’s glasses and cellphone had been found after her family had later reported her missing.

Despite that, Chara had almost managed to talk himself out of continuing to stalk his friend. If it weren’t for that in the last week or so, something seemed to have changed with Blue. Chara had noticed the skeleton acting a bit different. More nervous and fidgety. Constantly checking his phone. He was getting more calls too. Chara tried to rationalize it. Maybe Blue had trouble happening at home he was dealing with. Maybe he was fighting with his mysterious boyfriend.  Chara had never seen them and Blue had mentioned them by name, but Chara had seen him covering up the little dark spots and bite marks that were the skeleton equivalent of a hickey. Even today, Chara could see a particularly good one peeking out from where Blue’s bandana covered his neck. Chara really hoped it that was the answer.

When the teacher called the end of class, Chara hurried to intercept Blue before he could race off.

“Hey Blue, you doing ok? You seem like somethings bothering you,” he said, falling into step with the skeleton.

Blue seemed to suppress a jump and beamed a bright smile at Chara.

“Do I?” he asked, “Sorry, my brother is sick again.”

“Again? Poor guy. He’s been sick a lot lately.”

“Yeah, its his HP. Its so low, he’s really vulnerable,” Blue said sadly, “I keep telling him to come running with me but he’d so lazy! He never does!”

The guilt twisted in Chara’s gut.

“Anything I can do to help?”

Blue gave him a soft, grateful smile before shaking his head.

“Thank you for that but no.”

“Then I’ll hope for a speedy recovery,” Chara declared.

Blue’s smile brightened at that, a strange look in his starry eye lights.

“Mweheh, thank you! I’m sure he will be better soon! I’d better go now though,”

Blue waved and raced off. Chara was grateful. His smile had turned wooden as something suddenly clicked into place. He hadn’t seen Blue’s brother in years. They’d never been close, but now he couldn’t think of the last time the taller skeleton had been around. Another thing was that every time Blue had said his brother was sick had been around the time of each of the disappearances. The last thing was that Blue was lying about something. What Chara wasn’t sure, but he was sure Blue had just lied to him.

The guilt twisted in deeper as the seed of suspicion grew into a healthy tree with roots digging deep into his soul. Blue knew something. He was absolutely positive of that. He was going to find out what.

\---=---=---=---

_Sept 9 20XX_

_Son of local councilman Asgore Dremurr has been reported missing. He was last seen leaving his home on his bike the previous afternoon, apparently to visit a friend. That friend, one Sans “Blue” Sarif, later called Mr. Dremurr saying the young man, Chara Dremurr, had never arrived. Mr. Dremurr immediately notified the authorities. Search parties swept the city, but found no traces of the young man’s whereabouts._

_It was only with dawn that they found some hint. Tire tracks on a once popular trail into the forest lead investigators to an abandoned bicycle. Mr. Dremurr was able to identify the bike as his son’s. Search teams utilizing both scent hounds and dog monsters combed the woods using the location of the bike as a starting point. The trail ended where the missing young man appears to have tumbled down a steep bank to the river. A golden locket the young man was known to wear was found nearby._

_Searches continue but authorities worn chances are…_

“Blue, come back to bed.”

Blue put down the newspaper and looked up at Honey. He was leaning against the kitchen doorframe with a sleepy expression and a pair of loose pants slung tantalizingly low on his hips.

“You’re supposed to be sick, remember Papy?” Blue teased, getting up and taking his cup to the sink to clean.

“Mhmm, and you’re supposed to be morning the loss of a friend,” Honey countered.

Blue heard a soft puff of displaced air and quite suddenly found Honey pressed against him. Large, warm hands slipped up under his shirt to play with his ribs.

“I, however, am mourning to lack of you in bed with me,” Honey murmured against his neck.

Blue gave an breathy chuckle, “I guess I did say we could be lazy today. Though you don’t seem sated quite yet.”

Honey growled his agreement and Blue found himself suddenly back in the bed with Honey eagerly pressing him down against the mattress. Grinning, Blue resigned himself to staying in bed. After all, he really was rather full still. Just a little dessert and then he could indulge Honey in some napping. He had to be ready and well rested after all. Tomorrow he was joining the search for a missing friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IDK where this came from. I find I have trouble writing the swaps as pure and innocent or at least not dark in some way. I've got a scene from another version of the Swap boys I've had hanging around that I think I'll post too.


	6. Whistle Training

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Whistle training is a very important part of any dogs training. Any fool knows that.

 

“WHY IS YOUR BROTHER NOT WHISTLE TRAINED?!” Razz demanded.

Edge frowned at the smaller skeleton, “WHAT DO YOU MEAN, WHISTLE TRAINED? THE WHELP KNOWS TO COME WHEN CALLED!”

Razz narrowed his sockets at Edge before very deliberately whistling over his shoulder, never taking his eye lights from Edge. The sound had just barely finished when Slim appeared just behind Razz’s left shoulder. Razz was rewarded by seeing Edge start just slightly and blink expressively by the promptness of Razz’s faithful service.

“M’lord?” Slim murmured, looking around quickly to ensure no enemies were about.

Razz waved a hand at Slim and Slim relaxed, putting his smoldering cigarette back between his fangs.

“THAT IS WHISTLE TRAINING,” Razz snapped at Edge, “SOMETHING YOU SHOULD CORRECT IN YOUR DOG IMMEDIATELY. IT IS A REGRETABLE FAILING IN HIS TRAINING.”

With that, Razz turned sharply on his heel and marched away while Edge was still struggling to unclench his own fangs enough to snap out a retort. By the time he managed, Razz was out of sight, so Edge rounded on Slim.

“IT IS UNDIGNIFIED FOR A PAPYRI TO RESPOND TO SUCH A DEMEANING SUMMONS!” he snarled at Slim.

Edge didn’t understand why Slim allowed Razz such control. Slim was perfectly capable of being aggressive, intimidating and dominating. Yet when it came to his diminutive brother, Slim was happy to kneel and obey.

Slim slowly blinked at Edge’s tirade. Then he reached up to take his cigarette from between his fangs, exhaling a curling cloud of smoke, before answering.

“to be fair, m’lord is whistle trained too,” Slim said with a half shrug. Then Slim’s sockets narrowed a little, “why are you not whistle trained?”

Edge, not believing what he was hearing, sputtered indignantly. Slim grinned sharply at him.

“unless you two really like excuses to call each other’s names,” he said with a dry chuckle, “but hey, who am I to judge someone’s kinks?”

He hooked two of his fingers over his collar and rubbed for emphasize as a deep red flush washed across Edge’s skull.

“IT IS NOTHING OF THE KIND YOU WHIPPED, MASOCHISTIC, PATHETIC EXCUSE FOR A PAPYRUS!” Edge screamed, glaring fiercely at Slim, jagged bone attacks appearing at his shoulders.

Slim laughed lowly, winked, and then vanished.

“GAAAAHHHH!!!” Edge shrieked in utter indignation.


End file.
